


they tell a tale you can't erase (no one's ever looked at you that way)

by intothenowhere (orphan_account)



Category: Guardians of the Galaxy (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Angst, Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Spoilers, Emotional Hurt, F/M, Family Feels, Pining, Post-Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Reunions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-27
Updated: 2019-04-27
Packaged: 2020-02-08 12:54:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 977
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18623692
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/intothenowhere
Summary: Six months after the events of Endgame, Peter Quill finds Gamora on Knowhere.





	they tell a tale you can't erase (no one's ever looked at you that way)

**Author's Note:**

  * For [finnpoerey](https://archiveofourown.org/users/finnpoerey/gifts).



> Title taken from Counting Paths by Matthew and the Atlas.
> 
> I haven't actually seen Endgame (and due to recent events I probably won't get to, such is the way of my life), but I've read what happens. I'm none too thrilled with how my favorite characters were handled, but I'm going to try and reserve judgment until I see the movie. Whenever the hell that may be.
> 
> This fic came about after a conversation with my friend, Indy. I adore Starmora (and the Guardians) so this kind of poured out suddenly. They're one of the few things I truly love and enjoy about the Marvel universe, and I'm glad that they're back in the proper hands.
> 
> Anyway, I hope you enjoy this rambling mess of a fic. I'm almost certain the reunion will be more dramatic and angsty than this, but I didn't want to tug my heartstrings anymore than I already had.

It took him six months, twenty days, and four hours to find her again.

The other Guardians were working as tirelessly as he was, trying to track Gamora down, and kept their reservations to themselves, but he'd heard Rocket and Groot conversing quietly to themselves about the odds of her staying with them even if they did find her.

Thor was the most optimistic of them all. Quill didn't understand how the guy kept such a brave face on - initially, he thought it was some bullshit act, some part of being royalty. Big whoop. But now, as he worked tirelessly to find Gamora, he understood that hope was Thor's motivation, just as revenge had been theirs not so long ago.

In the end, they found her on the last place any of them expected to arrive at again. Knowhere.

To Quill's infinite dismay and heartache, he found her overlooking the same balcony she had when he had first shared his music with her, when they'd almost -

He shook it off, and reached out a shaking hand, to tap her on the shoulder. It was the stupidest thing he could've done, but he longed for her touch, just to convince himself she still existed, in some form or another.

It was a move that cost him a lot of pain. She whirled around instantly, twisting his arm painfully, and bringing her knee up forcibly into his groin. The air left his lungs, and Quill doubled over, as Gamora whirled around him, pinning his arm behind his back and shoving him over the railing.

Just like old times.

"We can't keep meeting like this," Quill wheezed.

Gamora - but not their Gamora, the woman she was before - replied disdainfully, "We wouldn't have to if you'd stop looking for me."

"Look, I get it. You don't know who the hell I am, or why a tree and a raccoon want to help you - ow ow ow -" her grip on his arm tightened, twisting it further. He was expecting it to pop out of place at any second.

"I don't need help from the biggest group of idiots the galaxy's ever seen."

"Yeah, well guess what, Gamora. You were part of the biggest group of idiots. You were our friend, our - you were our family."

The grip on his arm slackened, then released entirely. Quill heaved with relief, turning around to face her. To most, her expression would be unreadable. But Quill recognized it as hesitance. He took this as an opening.

"We know you, Gamora. We know what Thanos did to your planet, I know he killed your family in front of you. We know you wanted to stop him, to be more than the killer he made you. And you are. Mantis, Drax, Rocket and Groot - we know that, we know you, not just as the most dangerous woman in the galaxy but as Gamora."

Gamora's eyes softened, her mouth dropping slightly in surprise, but she recovered quickly enough. "If any of you knew the real me, you wouldn't want me anywhere near you."

"Why? You think we're any better?" Quill laughed, "My father was a genocidal maniac who killed my mother, and wanted me to rule over the galaxy by his side. I was kidnapped and raised by a bunch'a space pirates who threatened to eat me if I didn't behave. We've all had terrible things happen to us, have all done terrible things. But we protect the galaxy anyway, cos what the hell. We're a family because we know what it's like not to have one."

Gamora's gaze finally met his, and there was some sort of understanding in them. "You...you were her family?"

Her. That one word crushed him, the weight of the memory of her; her brilliance, her kindness, the way she carried herself into battle, all the times they'd fought, all the times they'd been there to catch each other.

Quill swallowed thickly, finding it hard to breathe. "She was mine," he said at last. She was his everything, he'd been caught in her orbit for years. Without her, he was weightless. "She was my best friend, my partner. My...my fault."

Gamora took a step forward, and he braced himself. For what, he didn't know. A punch? Another knee in the nuts? But instead, she studied him for a long moment, expression inscrutable, even for him.

"I am not the friend that you lost," she said, and Quill felt his stomach plummet. "The Gamora you knew is gone, but..."

Her eyes slide away from him, and toward the nebula across from where they stand. "I've fought alongside people who mean to do the galaxy harm my entire life. Maybe it's time I help protect it."

Quill's eyes were wet when she turned back to face him, a tiny smile tugging on his lips. She inhaled sharply - she couldn't remember anyone looking at her so...softly before.

"Just so you know, we do steal from bad people every now and then, too."

"Oh?"

"They're very bad people," Quill promises, then shakes his head. "Though, I don't know how much His Majesty is gonna like that."

"You have a ruler?" Gamora asked, as Quill stepped towards the corridor. She followed him, in tune to his step. He tried to ignore it. This Gamora didn't love him, this Gamora didn't know him. Hadn't listened to all the old wounds he kept hidden behind his clownish personality. 

"No," Quill said a bit more brashly than need be. "No, the Guardians aren't ruled by anyone. Well, I guess you and I - she and I," he corrected himself as they walked further inward, "were the leaders. But no one follows orders, so it was kinda pointless."

"Your crew...I think I might like them." Gamora replied.

Quill looked over at her, "I'm glad. Cos I know they'll love you."


End file.
